Living beings enslaved by the Desolate Lord of the Desolate Forbidden Land were called Desolate Slaves.
Those who could become Desolate Slaves were not merely peerless geniuses. Some also had ties to the Ruthless Empress—for example, those fortunate enough to obtain some of her inheritance. If they briefly awakened the sleeping Ruthless Empress while falling into the Desolate Abyss, they had a chance of being transformed into Desolate Slaves by her.
The state of a Desolate Slave was rather peculiar. They seemed capable of eternal life, yet also seemed to have been refined into puppets. Still, they retained a trace of intelligence. Normally, they only slept within the Desolate Abyss, as though sealed inside Divine Source.
But none of that was the main point.
The main point was that the Desolate Slave, the Heavenly Jade Saintess, had left the bounds of the Desolate Forbidden Land. Her dark hair danced in the wind as she flew through the air, her dreamlike figure resembling an immortal maiden walking upon waves.
However, after she flew out of the Primordial Mountain Range, Jiang Ming was nowhere to be seen. He had hidden away to enter seclusion.
The Heavenly Jade Saintess's hazy eyes were vacant and ethereal, like crystal spheres clear to the bottom. In the end, her figure slowly drifted backward as she returned to the Desolate Forbidden Land. Her flight was dreamlike and unreal; like a streak of immortal light, she had already returned to the Sacred Mountain of the Desolate Forbidden Land and fallen back into the Desolate Abyss.
Naturally, Jiang Ming knew nothing of this. He had long since left. It was better to stay farther away from the Desolate Forbidden Land.
That damn system had caused trouble by binding the Marriage Red Thread to the Desolate Slave, the Heavenly Jade Saintess. What happened today had been bizarre—she had actually chased after him. Fortunately, Desolate Slaves would not leave the Desolate Forbidden Land. That had been far too close.
He did not believe Madman had enough charm to attract the Heavenly Jade Saintess here. Madman often came here to howl and weep his heart out, yet the Heavenly Jade Saintess had never come out to see him. Otherwise, with Madman's crazed state of mind, what if he lost control and charged straight into the Desolate Forbidden Land?
Besides, hadn't Madman been quite rational today? When Jiang Ming wanted to enter, Madman had even held him back.
Madman was extremely reliable when he was rational. Over six thousand years, he had witnessed far too many people perish in the Desolate Forbidden Land. Whenever something major happened here, he could not help coming to take a look.
Those who entered were basically all eroded by Huang's power, eventually turning to ash.
Most importantly, that thieving system had bound Xiao Nannan. It had actually bullied a little girl. By that logic, Jiang Ming had also formed some karma with the Ruthless Empress sleeping beneath the Desolate Abyss.
What if approaching the Desolate Forbidden Land woke the Ruthless Empress?
With a casual slap from her, even the Emperor Armament of the Heavenly Jade Holy Land had shattered into pieces. In the end, it had all become nourishment for her Ghost Face Mask.
Jiang Ming was truly frightened.
There was also the First-Generation Desolate Ancient Sacred Body sleeping inside.
His ill-fated connection with the Desolate Forbidden Land ran far too deep!
Jiang Ming fled fifty thousand li in one breath and entered the Primordial Ruins again. Overall, compared to the Desolate Forbidden Land, the Primordial Ruins were as safe as home to him.
Within the Primordial Ruins, he found a perilous place that even Other Shore cultivators dared not approach: Thunderfall Valley.
Because there was too much magnetite ore underground here, Magnetism might even have formed. Lightning often struck this place, making it extremely dangerous. It was occupied by a Lightning Bird Tribe.
Jiang Ming used the Seventy-Two Transformations, first turning into a Spirit-Bright Sacred Ape to search for Magnetite Stones in the earth veins. Then he transformed into a Skyhorned Ant and, relying on its innate talent, burrowed beside the Magnetism.
It was a Magnetite Stone as large as a fist, encased in a vast amount of magnetite ore. It formed a natural interference field of Magnetism; even a cultivator's divine sense would be disrupted here.
Jiang Ming was now at Late Foundation Establishment. With this piece of Magnetism, it was enough to transform his Life-Bound Sword into a High-Grade Dharma Treasure.
The key was that he had not found many good materials recently.
Moreover, after his Life-Bound Sword became a Dharma Treasure, the conditions for its evolution naturally rose as well. Not just any material could support its transformation.
Jiang Ming stretched out his hand. A dazzling silver treasure sword resembling a sword of light rapidly expanded from a speck of dust, becoming the size of a finger.
With a thought, the silver treasure sword stabbed directly into the Magnetism and began devouring the essence contained within this strange treasure material.
The Magnetite Stone was completely black, black to a profound depth. It could distort the Dao laws of heaven and earth around it, leaving this place with only the Dao laws of Magnetism.
Magnetism possessed terrifying weight. A fist-sized piece was as heavy as a mountain.
It could also restrain most metal-element weapons. It was a treasure material comparable to Light Stone and Lightning Stone.
For example, weapons refined from Light Stone possessed evil-breaking power, as well as traits such as searing heat and high attack speed.
It seemed he needed to collect the Lightning Stone that the Lightning Bird owed him. He did not know how large that piece of Lightning Stone was, but it was compatible with the Magnetite Stone.
"Clang—"
Accompanied by a sword cry like a dragon-and-phoenix cry, Dao laws flowed across Jiang Ming's Life-Bound Sword. The Dao Patterns of a small nine-leaved grass faintly emerged upon it, and it naturally completed its transformation.
It became a Life-Bound Sword at the level of a High-Grade Dharma Treasure.
The treasure weapons refined by most cultivators at the Third Stage of the Four Extremes Secret Realm were roughly of this grade.
Next came secluded cultivation.
Jiang Ming continued nurturing his Life-Bound Sword with the residual power of Magnetism in this magnetite vein. After devouring a piece of Magnetism, black Dao Patterns appeared upon the formerly silver sword. It looked simple and grand, with a distinct ancient charm, like an ancient Han sword.
"Transform."
The next moment, Jiang Ming transformed once more into a Golden Cauldron Furnace. Ancient Immortal Antiquity Script was engraved upon it. It was hexagonal overall, supported by three legs. The entire treasured cauldron gleamed golden, resplendent and massive, majestic and imposing.
First came a thousand-year Golden Ginseng. After consuming it, Jiang Ming's vital essence surged. The Twelfth-Grade Lotus Dao Platform floated and sank within the violet-gold True Essence Sea, directly devouring that vital essence.
Then there was nothing else.
Awesome!
Though he was not like Ye Fan, for whom even consuming Quasi-Undying Divine Medicine directly could barely bring improvement.
Still, there was no doubt that a powerful physique was like the difference between a Hummer and an ordinary electric car. It was normal for it to guzzle fuel.
A two-thousand-year Xun Wind Grass.
Even for his current self, this grass was suitable to consume. After eating it, he could not only absorb the spiritual medicine's vital essence, but also gain the support of its special Xun Wind power.
Boom!
In the underground stone chamber where Jiang Ming was cultivating in seclusion, a ring of Xun Wind tornadoes the color of blue-and-white porcelain emerged around his body, perfectly absorbing the medicinal effects.
At the same time, the Immortal Phoenix Dao Patterns within Jiang Ming's phenomenon, the Auspicious Dragon-Phoenix Diagram, seemed to become a little clearer.
But Jiang Ming knew that was merely an illusion. How could it possibly be so easy?
Two Silver Pan Peaches, each with an age of twenty-two hundred years.
Within Jiang Ming's purple Sea of Bitterness, violet mist swirled. A violet-gold True Essence Sea appeared above the Sea of Bitterness, while a Twelfth-Grade Lotus Platform bloomed with twelve-colored divine radiance, interweaving with the Dao Patterns between heaven and earth as it slowly transformed.
During this process, Jiang Ming's four great phenomena also devoured the Dao Patterns of heaven and earth, rapidly taking shape and improving themselves. Each grew clearer. They had once been like flowers seen through mist, but now it was more like a thin veil of fog that could be pierced at any moment.
This process continued for two months.
"Boom!"
Jiang Ming's aura abruptly broke through its shackles. The final three lotus petals of the Twelfth-Grade Lotus Dao Platform finally took complete form, crystalline and translucent, as though carved from Nine Heavens glass. Vivid and lifelike, they were white, black, and purple respectively.
Foundation Establishment Stage Completion.
Jiang Ming was quite satisfied with his cultivation speed. In his previous life, it had taken him five years to reach this realm.
Now, it had taken only one year.
That cheat Ye Fan would soon arrive at the Desolate Forbidden Land aboard the Nine Dragons Pulling a Coffin, right?!
As inspiration struck him, Jiang Ming suddenly widened his eyes.
The Lihuo Divine Furnace. Thinking of Ye Fan had immediately reminded him of something. Perhaps he could snatch away a portion of Ye Fan's fortuitous encounter.
The Lihuo Divine Furnace was very special. It was not an Emperor Armament, but before Emperor Hengyu found Extreme Dao Treasure Material, it had been the weapon he used all along.
He would seize it and see whether it could suppress his Fate Pattern.